Cal-Peculiarities: How California Employment Law is Different 2022 Edition

©2022 Seyfarth Shaw LLP  www.seyfarth.com 2022 Cal-Peculiarities | 33 On review, the California Supreme Court declined to rule on the viability of the “honest belief” defense, as it ruled for the defendant on another groun d. 42 2.3.7 San Francisco work arrangement leave The San Francisco Family Friendly Workplace Ordinance gives employees of covered employers the right to request a flexible or predictable work arrangements to care for a child, a covered family member with a serious health condition, or a parent over age 65 . 43 T o be eligible, an employee must have worked for the employer for at least six months, must regularly work at least eight hours per week, and must work within the San Francisco City limits. A request by an eligible employee triggers various procedural requirements. The employer must meet with the employee about the request within 21 days of the request and respond in writing to the employee’s request within 21 days of that meeting. An employer may deny the employee’s request for bona fide business reasons such as cost, detrimental effect on customer needs, inability to organize work among other employees, or insufficiency of work during the periods the requesting employee proposes to work. 2.4 Paid Family Leave Employees of private California employers who take time off work for certain military exigencies, to care for a seriously ill family member, or to bond with a new child can take up to eight weeks of Paid Family Leave (PFL) (also known as Family Temporary Disability Insurance or FTDI benefits) during a 12-month period . 44 A n employee can claim benefits at any time. The program is administered in conjunction with the state disability insurance program, with insurance payments funded by an employee payroll tax. As of July 2020, the benefit period increased to eight weeks . 45 Employees can claim benefits at any time after being employed. The program is administered in conjunction with the state disability insurance program, with insurance payments funded by an employee payroll tax. The level of benefits provided to individuals in the PFL and State Disability Insurance (SDI) programs for periods of disability and family leave is either 60 or 70 percent, depending on the applicant’s income, up to a cap . 46 A n employer may require an employee to take up to two weeks of earned but unused vacation leave prior to the employee’s initial receipt of PFL benefits . 47 Some other states’ paid family leave laws do create protected leave. In a California twist, the PFL law does NOT create leave rights. Thus, California employees eligible for PFL benefits are not entitled to job protection during the leave unless the leave is otherwise protected by law (e.g., FMLA or CFRA), and employers need not provide employee benefits during the PFL unless other statutes (e.g., FMLA or CFRA) provide for continuation of benefits. Under a broad definition of “family member,” family temporary disability wage replacement benefits are available for family leaves regarding not only a seriously ill child, spouse, parent, or domestic partner, but also a seriously ill grandparent, grandchild, sibling, and parent-in-la w. 48 Pay is also available for leave to bond with a minor child within one year of the birth of the child or the placement of the child in connection with foster care or adoption . 49 As of 2021, PFL benefits are available for leave to participate in a qualifying exigency related to the covered active duty status or call to covered active duty status of a spouse, domestic partner, child, or parent in the U.S. Armed Forces . 50 2.4.1 San Francisco Paid Parental Leave Ordinance San Francisco’s Paid Parental Leave Ordinance (SFPPLO) requires employers who regularly employ at least 20 employees worldwide to provide full pay (up to a cap) for up to eight weeks . 51 E ligible employees may already receive wage replacement through the California PFL, but San Francisco employers must supplement the PFL